Conn. Senator Pushes Background Checks for Ammo Purchases

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D., Conn.) said he intends to introduce a bill this month that would require background checks for all purchases of ammunition, which he called the “black hole of gun violence prevention.”

Mr. Blumenthal said Tuesday that the bill would be in addition to background checks already required for firearms purchases from federally licensed dealers. Checks are run through a database maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation that lists former felons, fugitives, those deemed mentally ill and others who are barred from possessing firearms or ammunition.

A felon who walks into a store to buy ammunition “can load an entire shopping cart, pay and walk out,” Mr. Blumenthal said. He said that sellers who are not federally licensed would have the checks run by a federally licensed dealer…

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